INDIANAPOLIS (OSV News) ─ The excitement and nervousness kept building for Dr. Brandon and Dr. Arielle Brown as they heard the overflowing crowd at the Vatican roar, signaling that Pope Leo XIV was beginning his ride in the popemobile through St. Peter's Square.
Three hours earlier, the couple from SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in Indianapolis had arrived in the plaza in front of St. Peter's Basilica with one great hope -- to have their 6-week-old baby, Laurence, receive a blessing from the new pope during his first general audience on May 21.
Before they entered the square, the couple had talked in advance with their friend, Father Rory Hanly, rector of the Basilica of San Silvestro in Rome, who arranged for them to get into the audience. The Irish Pallottine priest also offered several tips for making the most of the experience, including how to be in position for Laurence to receive a blessing from Pope Leo.
"If you want to have a good chance of the pope coming near you, you need to be really close to his route or have a baby," Brandon recalled about his friend's advice. "The audience was at 10 a.m., so we decided to get there at 7, and there were already several thousand people there."
There were lots of lines and security "to get through," Brandon told The Criterion, Indianapolis' archdiocesan news outlet. "There are various seating areas, and they only open them one at a time."
"We went over to one of the Swiss Guards and asked if they would open one of the areas where the route of the pope would be," Brandon said. "Initially he said no, but he also said he would do it soon, and to stay close to him. When it was time, he let us into this area, and when everybody saw this, there was this mad rush there.
"We made it to the front with some nuns from China who didn't speak English and some Filipino pilgrims who did. They were very happy to be near us because we had a baby."
Brandon also recalled one more important tip that Father Hanly shared.
"He had told me, 'Don't be afraid to hold out your baby as far as possible because the pope doesn't walk along the route, he's riding, and you can't get right up to the car. The pope's security is walking alongside the car. If the opportunity arises, they will hand the baby up to the pope.'"
That possibility filled Arielle with so much emotion when she heard tens of thousands of people roar as Pope Leo began his route through the square.
"When we were going to Italy and planning to be at the audience, I had no idea that this could even be possible until Father Rory said we might be able to have Laurence blessed by the pope," Arielle said. "I got a sense of hopefulness, but it seemed impossible. When the Swiss Guards let us in and people helped us get to the perimeter, I started feeling antsy. A little bit of desperation. I really, really, really wanted this for my baby so much."
That desire intensified as she watched the Jumbotron viewing screen that showed the pope's path through the plaza.
"He stopped along the first corridor for the first baby," she said. "When I realized he was stopping to bless the babies, I just felt my heart explode. All of a sudden, I thought, 'This is really going to happen!'
"So, we kept watching, and we kept holding Laurence out. And then a security guard came up and looked at me and said, 'Can I take him?' I just felt so much urgency. Please take my baby! And then I felt so much joy. I was crying and crying."
Her tears flowed again as she recounted what came next. "I saw the pope pull him up, and this overwhelming peace came into my heart. I felt so grateful and so much peace."
Brandon added, "Pope Leo seemed startled at how young Laurence was. He had blessed a couple of other babies, and they were about 8, 12, 16 months old. And then he sees Laurence, who was 6 weeks. He took a little extra time with him.
"When the security person brought Laurence back to us, Pope Leo turned and looked and saw Arielle holding Laurence. He had this look of recognition, 'Oh, you're the mother of this little, tiny baby I just blessed.' He had this big smile, and he nodded in her direction and waved to her."
The emotion of that moment overwhelmed Arielle again.
"When they brought him back to me, I thanked them, and I was still crying," she said. "Then Pope Leo turned around and saw Laurence and me together, and I just felt God's presence. Like he was with us, that he was with Laurence. And I just felt grateful. I just felt serene all day."
Choking up, she paused before noting, "I didn't think there was any other circumstance ever that I could imagine freely and willingly releasing my baby into a crowd of 80,000 people, and I had no fear about it. Just urgency. Just please take him. It was really wonderful."
So were the reactions of the people surrounding the couple and their child.
"The people who were around us were so sweet," Arielle said. "People came up to me afterwards and asked if they could kiss his hand because he had been blessed by the pope. A few people came up and gave us rosaries and relics and holy cards. And they said they would be praying for Laurence. They wanted him to have this rosary from their pilgrimage. They wanted him to have this golden cross that meant something to them.
"As a mother, there's nothing like the feeling of the presence of God with your child. And feeling an outpouring of love for him. It was a life-defining experience for me."
As a member of Pope Leo's security detail handed Laurence back to Arielle, the couple was also given a card noting that photographs of the pope blessing their baby would be available on a Vatican website soon.
The Browns' five days in Rome included a visit to the church that honors the martyr that Laurence is named for -- the Basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura (St. Lawrence outside the Walls).
Upon their return to Indianapolis, the couple shared their memories with the other members of their family -- Brandon's seven children who are Arielle's step-children: Isabella, Leo, Evangeline, Charlotte, Clement, Blaise and Moses.
"They have all been so great," Arielle said about the older children's reactions to the trip to Rome with Laurence. "They may have been jealous about all the gelato we ate, but they were all very positive about it."
For the couple, the experience will always remind them of the way that they believe God works in people's lives.
"To me, the whole week feels like a joyful mystery," Arielle said. "I didn't expect it to happen the way it did. And I couldn't believe it was happening when it happened. That week serves to remind me that God is at work, and he's been at work since the beginning. He was at work in St. Lawrence's life, and now he's at work in my Laurence's life. God at work is a mystery to me, but it's also something that is a source of joy.
"Being in Rome, you remember the Christians who have come before and endured, and you feel so safe in the Lord's arms," she added. "He's keeping his church in his care, and he's keeping us in his care. It's his ever outpouring of not just grace but also love. I think of God's enduring love and the peace that comes from it."
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John Shaughnessy is assistant editor of The Criterion, the news outlet of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis. This story was first published in The Criterion and distributed in partnership with OSV News.
